Crew Tactical Review: Columbus drops two straight with loss to Philadelphia

The Crew fell again on the road Saturday against a solid Philadelphia team, dropping them to 7th in the Eastern Conference. The Black & Gold conceded early due to an Eloy Room howler and was never able to claw back into the game. This now marks two straight games in which Columbus has failed to score and conceded the winning goal on a defensive mistake. The way the Crew was set up was different from the past few games in subtle ways, but the scoring touch was lacking from the Black & Gold’s attacking players.

Switching to a 4-4-1-1 and 4-4-2 defensively

The Crew lined up on Saturday in the classic 4-2-3-1 formation that they usually do but shifted when the ball was turned over. What formation they switched to depended on where the ball was on the field. When Philadelphia had possession in the middle of the pitch, the Black & Gold would play in a 4-4-1-1 with Lucas Zelarayan as the lone attacking midfielder with Miguel Berry in front of him. Derrick Etienne and Yaw Yeboah would drop in deeper than Zelarayan in the half space between the defensive midfielders and Lucas so that the Union couldn’t get behind them. When the ball was switched wide, Columbus reacted by going into a 4-4-2 formation. The wingers stayed in the exact same spot as in the 4-4-1-1, but Lucas Zelarayan stepped up alongside Miguel Berry and took the weak side of the field. This means that Berry always pressed the ball on the sideline, while Zelarayan prevented the switch. Artur and Darlington Nagbe also stepped up a little bit more in the 4-4-2 than in the 4-4-1-1 to prevent Philadelphia’s midfielders from receiving the ball and turning. The Crew’s whole defensive mantra was keeping Philadelphia in front of them, pressing the ball, and then preying on a bad touch, pass, or mishap by the Union team.

Columbus pressing as soon as the ball goes toward the sideline

I’ve already touched on this a little bit, but this is the “opportune” pressing system that is a staple of Caleb Porter coached teams. When the ball is in the middle of the pitch, the player in possession has lots of passing options, and it’s easy to get exploited if you press too hard. This is why the Crew tended to sit back in the 4-4-1-1 in this situation, but as soon as the ball was played to a wide back or winger, the press was on immediately. The idea of pressing toward the sideline is more opportune than pressing in the middle because the options are cut down. As soon as the Black & Gold press, the field is cut in half, and so are the opposing player’s options because the Crew are cutting off the switch, cutting off the pivot player, and they are backed up against the sideline. Typically, if the press works, the only options are to play back to the goalkeeper or to play a long ball up top to the striker. If they play back to the goalkeeper Columbus get to step up and gain ground, and if the ball is played up top to the striker, that player is going to have a headache after being run through by Jonathan Mensah or Milos Degenek. The problem on Saturday was the Black & Gold’s press was too slow. The players looked tired and lethargic as they pressed toward the ball, which allowed the Union to either switch the ball or find the pivot player quicker than the Crew were pressing. This is a problem that needs to be resolved in the upcoming games if Columbus wants to get back on track after two straight 1-0 losses.

The absence of the “Pivot” player

Another staple of a Caleb Porter coached team was missing on Saturday night, the pivot player. In Porter’s system, he wants to possess the ball and break down an opponent until the Crew can create positional overloads and go on the attack. This is accomplished by repeatedly switching the ball and probing the defensive team until they crack, and the Black & Gold can break through. Columbus is completely fine with passing the ball around their back line until they see an opening they can exploit, and this is where the pivot player is so important. Typically, the pivot will be either Darlington Nagbe or Artur. When the Crew get possession in their defensive half, either of the defensive midfielders will tend to drop in between the center backs and provide an extra option for the ball to be played to. This accomplishes a number of things for Columbus. Firstly, it allows the center backs to get wider and pushes the outside backs like Pedro Santos and Stephen Moreira higher up the field. Secondly, it gives the other defensive midfielder more room in the middle to find splits and be creative. Thirdly, it takes pressure off of Milos Degenek and Jonathan Mensah to control playing out of the back. By sticking a midfielder in the backline, it provides a sense of comfort and technical skill for the team as they work the ball around and try to find an opening. On Saturday, the Crew opted to play much of the time without a pivot player. This may be due to conceding the early goal, but Darlington Nagbe and Artur for the most part stayed in their defensive midfielder spot and tried to get the ball to their feet. This change could explain the lack of attacking creativity going forward, because when you remove the pivot player from the defensive line, the wide backs can’t get up as high, the space in the midfield is more occupied, and the wingers are forced to go one on one against the opposing outside backs. The pivot player is essential in Caleb Porter’s system, and it is puzzling to me why they would abandon it for this match. This change though, could explain the Black & Gold’s inability to score on Saturday.